The world’s largest cruise lines will begin their annual conference next Monday in Fort Lauderdale, where they will analyze the state of the industry and its challenges, including reducing carbon emissions.
This year’s edition of “Seatrade Cruise Global”, considered the largest cruise show in the world, will be held from March 27 to 29 at the newly renovated Fort Lauderdale Convention Center, whose exhibition area has doubled to reach 32,500 square meters.
Spain, Portugal and several Latin American countries, such as Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, the Dominican Republic and Uruguay, in addition to Puerto Rico, have their own pavilions at Seatrade, including the central point is the conference which will bring together the presidents of the main cruise lines of the world under the heading “Forward Momentum” (“Momentum forward”).
This roundtable will discuss the state of global tourism and the cruise industry.
BBC World News presenter Lucy Hockings will moderate Kelly Craighead, Chair of the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA); Frank Del Rio, chairman of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings; Jason Liberty, Chairman of Royal Caribbean Group; Pierfrancesco Vago, Chairman of MSC Group, and Josh Weinstein, CEO of Carnival Corporation.
“With major innovations on the horizon and rising consumer demand, this year is a pivotal time for the cruise industry,” the CLIA director said in a statement, highlighting the “pathway for innovations.” implemented to “help navigate towards a brighter future”. “.
During the conference, panelists will discuss and analyze key issues related to the future of the industry, such as environmental sustainability, destination management and consumer travel trends, Seatrade Cruise Global said in the release. .
“We are delighted to kick off the conference with a dynamic roster of new speakers representing the four major cruise lines and our CLIA partners,” said Chiara Giorgi, Global Director of Brand and Events for Seatrade Cruise.
Giorgi emphasized that the keynote panel “will serve as a powerful primer to spark dialogue on key issues affecting our industry as we dive into another year of sharing, collaboration and networking at Seatrade Cruise Global.”
This conference will explore “the outlook for industry commitment to carbon neutral cruises by 2050”, how cruise lines are working with destinations to support “responsible tourism” or the advancement of this industry after the pandemic.
Additionally, ships debuting in 2023 and new cruise and technology experiences will be reviewed.
Scheduled speakers include a session titled “No Longer Just for Theme Parks: How Technology is Shaping the Future of Onboard Experiences,” presented by Mark Amos, Vice President of JRA and Trevor Young, Vice President of New construction and redevelopment of MSC Cruises.
The session will feature the new Robotron attraction aboard MSC Seascape.
The show covers all sectors of the cruise industry, including attractions, art and interior design, entertainment, environment, ports and destinations or shipbuilding.
Ports of Spain has one of the largest pavilions at the fair, which houses the ports of La Coruña, Alicante, Almería, Algeciras, Cadiz, the Balearic Islands and Barcelona. Bilbao, Cartagena, Ferrol, Huelva, Malaga, Melilla, Motril, Santander, Seville, Tarragona, Valencia and Vigo.
In addition, there is a flag for the ports of Catalonia and another for the ports of the Balearic Islands, and the ports of the Canary Islands are promoted in a flag for the islands of the Atlantic, as was the case at Seatrade 2022 , held at Miami Beach.